Research Projects

The staff that works for Indiana

The Survey consists of a diverse group of scientists, specialists,
and support staff dedicated to serving the earth science needs of
the state of Indiana. They include research geologists in a variety
of disciplines and specialists in cartography, GIS, database and web
development, editing, and layout design, supported by an active
business staff. The Survey is organized into three divisions:
Research, Information Services, and Business Affairs.

Geological Hazards

IGSMap is the public source for geologic maps and data in Indiana.
The Map Gallery helps people find commonly used maps and information
for a better understanding of Indiana's geologic materials, resources,
and issues.
View IGSMap Gallery

Offline Services

Gazing out over the flat landscape of Howard County around Kokomo, you might think that the scenery is,
frankly, boring. Indiana's central plain clearly does not rival the diverse geologic landscapes of the
world's most scenic places. However, the processes that formed this panorama are complex and fascinating.
And with a bit of knowledge about how glaciers affected this area, you will see that the modern surface,
apparently so plain, is in reality very intricate.

Left much as when the last glacier melted 16,000 years ago, the landscape today reflects a series of
climate-related surges of the massive Laurentide ice sheet that still covered all Canada and parts of
the Midwest. About 17,000 years ago, a tongue of the ice sheet surged southwestward to Indianapolis,
then melted in place over many centuries. The icy surface was covered with deep crevasses and frigid
ice-walled lakes in what is now Russiaville. Eventually the ice advanced again straight westward,
carving the remarkable Young America flute field (mostly north of State Road 18), and then again
southwestward to form the Windfall crevasse fan. Finally, the glacier made one last massive advance to
the Union City Moraine.

This former Canadian resident arrived in one of the glacial advances into central Indiana. These
transported rocks are known as "glacial erratics," and can be seen around Kokomo gracing front yards
and flower gardens, as well as in farmers' fields.

Beneath the scoured glacial debris, called "drift," is the land surface as it was before the presence
of the glacier, about a million years ago. The thick rich soils that grow Indiana's corn and soybeans
owe their existence to this glacial debris. This soil is one of the most beneficial legacies of the ice
age; Indiana's agricultural wealth can be attributed, in part, to sediments carried by the glaciers from
as far away as Canada. Buried soils represent warm periods between glacial advances and are key markers
for geologists sorting out the periods of time that the ice surged and retreated.

The understanding of glaciers and the geology of the region is tied to future planning for land use, the
extraction of minerals, and the protection of the ground water we need for drinking and irrigation of
farmland. These issues are directly related to the nature of glacial deposits, since aquifers the
water-bearing formations under the surface are also part of the legacy of the glaciers.